f >“ -f'lji 
v< 
■ 
■I 
■> 
/ 
;0 
Ui* 
Brewer on the Nests and Eggs of the Empidonaces. — In a 
paper * of ten pages Dr. Brewer gives “ the measurements of all the eggs 
of the eight species of Empidonax that are in the collection of the Smith- 
sonian Institution,” and of those in his own collection, with the addition 
of some others. Following the measurements and descriptions of the 
nests and eggs of these eight species are several pages devoted to a con- 
sideration of the nests and eggs of E. flaviventris , in which the author 
affirms that the unspotted eggs, found in nests built in hushes, and for- 
merly ascribed by him to this species, were correctly identified, and argues 
that the differences these nests and eggs present, as compared with those 
recently described by Messrs. Osborne and Furdie, are only in accordance 
with the wide range of variability in these respects known to obtain in 
other species of this genus. — J. A. A. 
Bull. N.O.O. 4, Oct., 1879, p. 232 . 
Nesting of the Yellow-bellied Flycatcher (Empidonax flavi- 
ventris). — During a collecting trip made the past season with Mr. J. 
Dwight, Jr., to Fort Fairfield, Maine, I had the good fortune to obtain two 
nests of the Yellow-bellied Flycatcher (Empidonax flaviventris). As but 
little is known of the breeding habits of this bird, a description of the nest 
and eggs may not be without interest. 
My first nest, containing four fresh eggs, which was taken on June 14, 
I found in rather wet mixed woods of small spruces and arbor-vitals, with 
a few larger hemlocks, — also a few yellow birches and maples. It was on 
the edge of a bank formed by a decayed tree trunk, and over a pool in a 
small brook that was flowing beneath the moss-covered trunks of fallen 
trees. The nest was protected above and hidden from sight by some 
green moss growing upon a projecting root. A small vine (Ribes lacustre ) 
growing past the entrance of the nest gave additional concealment. The 
bird flew from the nest when I was within a few feet of it. After a short 
time she returned to the nest, and I again flushed her. Just as she was 
returning once more, Mr. Dwight shot her to make the identification com- 
plete. 
The nest, which was partly sunk in the surrounding moss, is made of 
fine brown roots, bits of rotten wood, and the scaly coverings of buds, 
apparently of the arbor-vit®, together with a few sticks and withered 
leaves, and one or two bits of arbor-vitas and green moss. It is scantily 
lined with very fine black roots and stalks of withered grass, the latter 
contrasting strongly in color with the rest of the nest. Its external diam- 
eter is four inches, its depth two and a quarter inches ; internally its 
diameter is two and three eighths inches, its depth one and a quarter 
inches. The ground color of the eggs is white, with a slight creamy tinge. 
They are spotted and blotched with two shades of light-reddish brown, 
mostly about the larger end. Two of the eggs have also a few fine dashes 
and specks of black over the other markings. Their measurements are as 
follows : — .68 X .52, .68 X .52, .66 X .51, .66 X. 51. 
I did not find the second set until June 27. It was in a small piece of 
damp woods, consisting of scattered arbor-vitms and hemlocks growing in 
the valley of a small brook. The nest was not far from a clearing, and 
was among a tangled mass of fallen trees. It was situated about two feet 
from the ground, on the side of the moss-covered stump of a fallen tree. 
It was deeply sunk in the soft green moss, which covered and protected 
it above, though the eggs could be seen from the outside. 
As I approached the spot I saw a bird dart out from the moss and 
fly swiftly away. I noticed a rather inconspicuous hole in the moss, 
and looking in saw the eggs. Kecognizing them by their resemblance to 
the other set, I retired a short distance and waited for the bird to come 
back. She returned in a few moments, and was soon joined by her mate, 
who, however, was disposed to remain rather more in the background. 
The female remained near the nest until I shot her, occasionally uttering 
her characteristic note of alarm, but without showing much anxiety. 
The nest, which is very bulky for the size of the bird, is a compact mass 
of the soft green moss that is so abundant in such places, with a few bits 
of arbor-vit® and one or two sticks. It is thinly lined with slender stalks 
of grass and a few very fine , roots. Its external diameter is four and a 
quarter inches, its depth four inches ; internally its diameter is two inches, 
its depth an inch and a half. The eggs, four in number, are white with a 
faint creamy tinge, and are marked, chiefly about the larger end, with 
spots and blotches of two shades of light reddish-brown, together with a 
few rather inconspicuous spots of lavender. Three of them have a few 
fine specks of black over the other markings. They measure .70X.54, 
.67 X .54, .67 X.53, .67 X .51. The eggs appeared to have been incubated 
for only a day or two. 
The nests and eggs that have been found in the past two seasons agree 
so closely in all respects as to render it probable, to say the least, that 
future sets will not vary much from them. Their number now seems suf- 
ficient to make one hesitate about admitting the identity of supposed nests 
of this species that differ widely from them in situation, structure, and in 
the appearance of the eggs. — Charles F. Batchelder, Cambridge, 
Mass. BuU. N.O.O. 4, Oct., 1879, p. JL*//- 2 V-2 • 
